Gordon Moody Association Claims Problem Gamblers Number Has Increased

By John Isaac,
Editor at online-gambling.com

John Isaac Editor at online-gambling.com

John Isaac is an editor with many years of experience in the gambling industry. He writes expert articles on card games like blackjack and poker. In addition, he is also well aware of the US gambling laws and the Indian and Dutch gambling markets. You can rely on verified information and insightful details.

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Last updated: July 29, 2020

Problem gamblers have been facing a lot of issues due to the coronavirus lockdown. According to the Gordon Moody Association, an organization that offers treatment programs to people with gambling issues, there is an increase in the number of interactions with problem gamblers from 30 per month to 1000. This increase has happened during the period between April to June.

The organization reports that the number of calls from people with suicidal ideations was five a day at the peak of the coronavirus lockdown.

“We did feel that we were likely to experience a major storm because of the coronavirus crisis, and now we think that the reality is that these figures may yet be the first signs of the storm. Now that we’re moving into the second quarter of 2020, we’re definitely seeing an upsurge in numbers” – explained Matthew Hickey, the CEO of the association.

He stated that usually, the calls are from people who previously were part of the association or are considering joining it.

Previously Other Studies Show Similar Data

The statistics correlate with data showing that although total gambling rates decreased during lockdown due to the unavailability of sporting events, daily customer gambling activities increased. The revenue of online gambling companies also increased.

The owner of Ladbrokes, GVC, registered a 22% decrease in net sales in the second quarter and an increase in online sales of 20%. According to multiple reports, web-based online casinos have a much higher addictive potential than sports betting at high street bookmakers.

Numbers published by the Gambling Commission in May revealed that while sports bets dropped by 31% during the lockdown, the use of online slot machines increased by 25%, online poker increased by 38%, and virtual sports bets increased by 40%.

Almost two-thirds of problem gamblers increased the amount of time and money they spent. Another research proved these results as well.

To this Hickey added that a more intense problem gambling attention is needed in order to decrease the stigma that stops them from seeking help.

Until Now There Are Over 294,066 Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in the UK

This is not the first study that shows that problem gamblers now gamble even more due to the coronavirus lockdown in the UK. According to that study about a quarter of people who only bet a week stated that they still have the same habit while 28% of them became more active. Interestingly, another 11% said that they are now gambling even more.

The company that conducts that study known as Clean Up Gambling was also looking for more strict regulations by the government.

On the other hand, in recent times the UK Gambling Commission has made significant changes in gambling and sports betting. The idea is to promote responsible gambling and protect problem gamblers.

Gambling and sports betting now seem to be an emerging issue despite that many gambling facilities have been locked for months due to the outbreak of the new coronavirus known as COVID-19.

At the moment, there have been 294,066 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the UK since the day it first appeared in the country.